- Describe civil engineering in simple words?
- Which is the tallest man-made structure in the world?
- According to you, what is that one important quality that a civil engineer should possess?
- Name the critical elements for a landfill?
- Discuss different types of Building foundations?
- Can you explain the whole concrete process?
- What do you mean by concrete curing? What are the methods used for concrete curing?
- What do you understand by slump tests?
- Explain the cavitation process in pipes & drains?
- What do you understand by soil analysis?
- Is there any situation wherein pot bearings should be used over elastomeric bearings?
- Why are alloys made & how are they made?
- What do you understand by segregation?
- Civil Engineering Interview HR Questions & Answers
- Do you think you can manage the work stress on the site? How do you plan to manage the workforce?
- What qualities do you think should a successful civil engineer have?
- What are your biggest strengths & weaknesses?
- Tips For Civil Engineering Interview
- Popular Civil Engineering Books
- Popular Civil Engineering YouTube Channels
- Popular Civil Engineering Blogs
A hard earned engineering degree behind your back, all the necessary technical knowledge in sight, isn't it time to dream big about a career in engineering?
However, what if cracking up an interview proves to be a nightmare? Being a good engineer isnt enough, it doesn’t guarantee you a job in your dream company.
We don’t mean to sound pessimistic, we just believe sharpening all the necessary skills beforehand before that big interview is a must.
In this blog, we shall highlight some civil engineering interview questions that shall help you sail through interviews in the relevant field.
Here are the questions which most likely are to be asked in a civil engineering interview.
1) Describe civil engineering in simple words?
Civil Engineering is the second oldest form of engineering in the world after military engineering.
It is simply defined as an expertise in the process of designing, constructing & maintaining various systems, including public infrastructure, buildings, houses & much more.
2) Which is the tallest man-made structure in the world?
World's tallest man-made structure is the Burj Dubai which stands at 800 meters tall.
3) According to you, what is that one important quality that a civil engineer should possess?
A civil engineer should have a bunch of important qualities to ensure a strong career path, however, according to me the most important quality which a civil engineer should possess is strong critical thinking & sound technical knowledge.
4) Name the critical elements for a landfill?
There are 4 major landfill elements: Bottom Liner, Collection System, Cover & Natural hydrogeological settings.
5) Discuss different types of building foundations?
While laying a foundation for any construction, three types of foundation patterns are mostly used.
Basement pattern: Wherein the basement of the building is prepared initially & then the rest of the storeys are constructed on top of the basement.
Crawl space pattern: Wherein a raised foundation is constructed first, this foundation is built above the ground, then the rest of the building is made on top.
Slab:This is the simplest way of construction wherein concrete is directly poured in the pit which is made in the ground.
6) Can you explain the whole concrete process?
The concrete process is categorized into 4 major parts, namely; Batching, Mixing, Placement & Compaction.
1) Batching: This is the initial process in which measuring of materials is done which needs to be in the concrete. This is either done by weighing the materials to make a proper required concrete known as weight batching or by measuring it by volume, known as volume batching.
2) Mixing: This process is initiated mostly in dry form first & then in wet form. Usually, there are two ways to mix concrete, either hand mixing or machine mixing. Selection of process is depends on the amount of concrete to be mixed.
3) Placement: The placement of mixed concrete is a crucial procedure. The mixed concrete is transported to the required position & spread at the desired place as soon as possible.
4) Compacting: This is the final step which ensures that any air bubbles trapped in the concrete while placing are removed using hand technique or by vibrators.
7) What do you mean by concrete curing? What are the methods used for concrete curing?
Concrete curing is the process of maintaining the right temperature & apt moisture level for the recently placed concrete. This process is done to the wet concrete to ensure its drying process takes less time & maximizes concrete strength.
Some of the common methods used in concrete curing are water sprays, ponding, curing compounds, steam curation.
8) What do you understand by slump tests?
Slump Tests are usually done to measure the consistency of the fresh concrete after it’s placed. It also measures the workability of fresh concrete.
9) Explain the cavitation process in pipes & drains?
Usually due to the air bubble formation within the fluids usually because of low-pressure conditions get even lower than the saturation pressure is defined as the cavitation process. This creates a potentially damaging situation to the durability of pipes.
10) What do you understand by soil analysis?
Soil analysis is defined as a process of soil testing to determine nutrients & elements which are embedded within that particular soil sample.
11) Is there any situation wherein pot bearings should be used over elastomeric bearings?
Pot bearings are used to maintain relatively high capacity load & within any rotational environment, so any such project requires pot bearing than elastomeric bearings. Pot bearings don’t even require very large bearing surfaces, unlike elastomeric bearings.
12) Why are alloys made & how are they made?
Usually it’s considered that alloys are made to produce better quality materials, however, alloys are also made to get materials as desired.
Alloys are made using a classic method of hot press usage. This includes rolling a hot metal base in an allowing metal powder drum. Then hot spraying procedure is performed on it, galvanized and so on.
Depending on the requirement, molten base metal is also added with small portions of alloying materials.
11) What do you understand by segregation?
Segregation is defined as a process of filtering cement & sand separately from the concrete mixture. In other words, segregation is caused due to vibration between materials forming a concrete.
One material being high in weight & one being less tend to be uneven while in a liquid state. The heavier material gets settled at the bottom of the concrete & lighter material moves on top.
Civil Engineering Interview HR Questions & Answers:
Here are some frequently asked HR interview questions & how should you answer them.
1) Do you think you can manage the work stress on the site? How do you plan to manage the workforce?
Well, I am a thorough professional & have worked on various projects. Many of them being quite stressful but I always believe in teamwork & try to bond well with my coworkers. Teamwork is the key towards completion of a succesful project.
I believe with the right attitude you can motivate your team to work positively & efficiently, thus reducing stress. However, in extreme stress conditions, I manage to keep calm & solve issues one by by one at a time without panicking.
Give a previous professional work example to support your answer in this case. Make sure it’s relevant to a stressful situation that you managed to handle well.
2) What qualities do you think should a successful civil engineer have?
According to me, Civil engineer should be motivated, should have an analytic bent of mind, technically expertise is a must, creative, time management should be on point & should possess management skills.
All these attributes together lay a perfect foundation for a succesful career in civil engineering.
3) What are your biggest strengths & weaknesses?
The answer may vary from individual to individual, however, make sure your answer shows your confidence & does reflect your true self in a better and positive way. Also, mention, what are you doing to overcome your weaknesses & to enhance your strengths.
Also read:
HR Interview Questions & Answers
Tips For Civil Engineering Interview
1) Know about your field of work
Usually, civil management interviews are more technical in nature, therefore insights about the field of engineering is a must. This shall brighten your chances to answer questions in a much confident way.
2) Be Professional, Look Professional
It's always considered as a part of professional etiquettes to be well-groomed while applying for a job. Indeed this reflects upon your professionalism & seriousness about a career you want to embark upon.
An Engineer is a professional degree holding individual, dressing up like one nearly always adds on to the positive impression on the interviewer.
3) Be Punctual
One of the most important attributes of an engineer is time management. This makes punctuality all the more important in an engineer’s career, hence it’s highly advisable to be punctual for your interview.
4) Think Out of The Box
If any situational question is asked to you, make sure you think creatively rather than providing with generic answers, make sure you provide an interviewer with a creative yet scalable answer.
5) Be Confident, Sound Confident
Answer confidently & be sure that whatever you saying makes perfect sense. Communication should be clear & polite.
Popular Civil Engineering Books
Here is a list of popular civil engineering books
Popular Civil Engineering YouTube Channels
Below is a list of some of the most popular Youtube Channels dedicated towards Civil Engineering.
Popular Civil Engineering Blogs
Following is a list of popular Civil Engineering blogs:
